China FM Wang Yi opens Africa tour with united call for rules-based order

China and the African Union issued a joint call to uphold an international law-based order, with particular respect for sovereignty and territorial integrity, in a display of unity against Washington’s raid on Venezuela.

Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi and African Union chief Mahmoud Ali Youssouf expressed concerns over the events in Venezuela in a statement released after their meeting in Ethiopia on Thursday.

The United States raided Venezuela on Saturday and abducted its leader Nicolas Maduro and his wife to New York. President Donald Trump also said the US would be in direct control of the country, including its oil.

In the statement, both sides also reaffirmed that “the sovereignty and territorial integrity of all countries must be respected and the fundamental principles of the United Nations Charter and international law must be adhered to”.

As members of the Global South, China and the African Union were committed to supporting each other to safeguard their respective core interests and concerns, as well as further strengthening coordination and cooperation to “inject positive momentum into global and regional peace, stability and development”, it said.

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Wang was in Ethiopia, which hosts the African Union headquarters, on the first stop of his tour of the continent, which has been the first overseas destination of the year for Chinese foreign ministers over 36 consecutive years.

South China Morning Post